Device, system, and method of selective activation and configuration of components. A manufactured electronic device includes at least one hardware component which is locked or disabled or deactivated, or is feature-constrained. An end-user of the electronic device utilizes a computerized platform or a cloud-based platform to request activation or upgrade of that hardware component, optionally together with paying a fee for such request. In response to the request, an access token is generated by the manufacturer of the electronic device, with cryptographic elements that indicate to the electronic device that the request is approved and authorized by the manufacturer and also by the relevant vendor or communications carrier. The electronic device validates the access token, and modifies configurational parameters in its secure storage to activate or to upgrade the capabilities of the relevant hardware components of the electronic device.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. A server apparatus, comprising: an activation request receiver, to receive an incoming request from an electronic device, wherein said incoming request comprises a request to activate or to upgrade a capability of a particular hardware component of said electronic device; an activation, response generator, to respond to said incoming request by generating a digital access token that authorizes said electronic device to activate or to upgrade said capability of said particular hardware component; wherein the activation request receiver is to receive said incoming request indirectly from said electronic device, via a device management server of a computerized platform for managing electronic devices; wherein the activation request is digitally signed with a cryptographic public key of a communications carrier that provides communication services to said electronic device.
2. The server apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said digital access token, after being generated and digitally signed by the server apparatus, and prior to delivery of the digital access token to said electronic device, is further digitally signed by said communication carrier that provides communication services to said electronic device.
3. The server apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said digital access token, upon delivery to said electronic device, triggers said electronic device to activate said particular hardware component.
4. The server apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said digital access token, upon delivery to said electronic device, triggers said electronic device to perform a modification of a configuration parameter of said particular hardware component, wherein said modification causes an improvement in a previously-constrained capability of said particular hardware component of said electronic device.
5. The server apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the digital access token comprises: an Authentication and Authorization for Constrained Environments (ACE) using OAuth Framework (ACE-OAuth) token, which is configured to further indicate (i) an identification of a particular target audience of said digital access token, and (ii) an identification of a scope of modification that is authorized by said digital access token.
Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.
August 2, 2018
November 3, 2020
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